Title: That Which Shapes A Man

Chapter Eleven: Resolution

Author: hisgoodgirl

Disclaimer: All belongs to Joss. Just one woman’s take on the story.

Rating: PG-15 for strong language

Characters: Jayne, ofc, omc

Pairing: Jayne/Kaylee in some chapters

Setting: About the time of "Those Left Behind"

Word Count: 3,278; chapter eleven of thirteen

A/N: From the first time I watched Firefly, I wondered what circumstances might have shaped the character of Jayne Cobb, an exceptionally complex man. This story emerged from the questions I asked.

Thanks to my excellent beta ArtemisPrime. To read previous chapters, click on my name above. Your comments are sincerely appreciated. Thanks!

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Chapter Eleven: Resolution

Outside, the wind roars, rushing down off the mountains and keening through the alleys, under eves and around the corners of buildings. The sound is haunting and mournful, much as the evening has felt, as Jayne now feels.

What th’ hell was I thinkin’, comin’ back here? Gorram sense of duty, poppin’ up in the damndest places. Don’t know what I was expectin’, but it sure wasn’t this.

The revelations of their conversation have been hard for Annalee Cobb, so soon on the heels of Mattie’s dying, and Jayne reckons her prolonged weeping is understandable. Her tears finally slow, and he persuades her to get some rest.

“Don’t worry, Ma, I’ll be right here,” he assures her, sitting back in the old armchair at her bedside until her even, deep breathing tells him she’s finally asleep. It hurts to realize how much his Ma has aged and how hard her life has been. Much as he’s tried to help, in many ways he’s only made things worse.

Ye soo, what a helluva day. I’d a just as soon get shot or chased by Reavers or baby sit Crazy Girl as go through this fei oo again. He rubs his aching head and stands. Guess I’d best lock up.

He gently closes his mother’s bedroom door and wanders